Ricky Moser, 49, shot to death during incident at his estranged wife’s home in Violet

A man living in Slidell was shot dead about midnight Wednesday after going to the Violet home of his estranged wife and allegedly striking the wife’s daughter in the head with an expandable baton and was shot once in the chest by the daughter’s boyfriend, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

No arrest has been made pending further investigation by the Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Pohlmann said. The District Attorney’s Office is also involved in the case.

The dead man was identified as Ricky Moser, 49, who died at the scene in a home at 2105 Riverpark Drive in Violet, the said.

The man who shot Moser, Kory Mattox, 21, of Violet, was questioned by sheriff’s detectives but is free pending further investigation, Sheriff Pohlmann said.

Moser allegedly struck to the head Raquel Nicolosi, 21, with an expandable baton. Nicolosi was visiting at the home of her mother, Tammy Martin, the estranged wife of Moser. Martin wasn’t home during the incident, authorities said.

Mattox said he got a shotgun and shot Moser once in the chest during the attack on Nicolosi, who was treated and released at a local hospital for her injuries, the sheriff said.

Martin had a protective order in effect against Moser at the time of the incident, Sheriff Pohlmann said. The two had been separated for months.

Also, the Sheriff’s Office had recently obtained warrants for the arrest of Moser from a judge on charges of simple burglary of Martin’s home and violation of the protective order, the sheriff said. Moser was shown on video surveillance entering Martin’s home about a week ago and the residence was damaged inside, the sheriff said.

Nine St. Bernard Parish sheriff’s deputies were graduated Nov. 21 from the Peace Officers Standards and Training, or P.O.S.T., basic police academy held at the Slidell Regional Training Academy and several received awards for class achievements, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Graduates from the Sheriff’s Office were deputies Andy Mowers, Scott Winters and Matthew Spencer, all of the Corrections Division; Heather Lyons and Shane Samaniego, both from the Communications Division; Jeremy Roig of the Criminal Records Division and Shelton Smith, Merlin Flores and Corey Gonzales, all of the Reserve Division.

About 20 officers from several agencies were graduated in a ceremony at Slidell Auditorium.

The academy includes about 400 hours of training in basic police work including firearms use, criminal investigation, patrol procedures, writing reports, driving training, physical fitness and other areas.

Representing St. Bernard’s Sheriff’s Office at the ceremony included Chief Deputy Richard Baumy, Col. David Mowers, head of the Corrections Division; Maj. David DiMaggio, director of training; Maj. Pete Tufaro, head of the Criminal Records Division; and Dep. Eric Eilers of the Community Relations Department.

Signs telling the public about the free Holiday Ride Home program will be put up around St. Bernard Parish. Shown at one last year is Sheriff James Pohlmann, at right, with Lt. Brent Bourgeois of the Traffic Division.

Sheriff James Pohlmann is urging St. Bernard residents to take advantage of the Sheriff’s Office free Holiday Ride Home program which starts Thanksgiving Day and runs through Jan. 2 to prevent drinking and driving.

More than 20 people took part last year, getting a ride home from any point in the parish, no questions asked, Sheriff Pohlmann said., Call 271-2501 for the ride,

“It was one of the largest number of people we have had in the program,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said, and was a sign that residents are heeding the advice that it isn’t worth the risk to get behind the wheel if they have been drinking.

“It is a no-brainer,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said. “Why should you risk killing or injuring yourself or someone else or being arrested for DWI when we will bring you home in St. Bernard,’’ the sheriff said. “Just call us.’’

Unfortunately, Sheriff Pohlmann said, arrests for driving while intoxicated also continue to be made each year during the holidays, indicating some people just don’t get it.

This is the 31th consecutive year the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office is offering the free Holiday Ride Home program, which was the first of its type in the New Orleans area when started in 1984.

The free rides home are for any parish resident who has been drinking during the Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Year’s holidays. Sheriff Pohlmann said.

A sheriff’s deputy will pick you up and take you to your home in St. Bernard or, if you live out of the parish, you can be taken to a sheriff’s sub-station where arrangements can be made to have someone pick you up there.

“We are proud of the Holiday Ride Home program,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said. “And why not? It was innovative when it was started and it shows we don’t want anyone injured by impaired drivers.’’

The Sheriff’s Office will be working in conjunction with State Police to battle drunk-driving by looking for impaired drivers. “We patrol vigorously looking for anyone who is driving drunk or on drugs,’’ the sheriff said.

November is National Adoption Awareness Month and state officials, Sheriff James Pohlmann, Ross Gonzales of St. Bernard Parish government, and Nicole Nicosia, wife of new District Attorney Perry Nicosia; took part in a balloon release by the 5th-grade Beta Club at Joseph Davies Elementary School in Meraux on Nov. 19 to focus attention on the need for continued adoptions. The students, officials and Principal Donna Schultz released 110 balloons, one for each child currently adopted in the New Orleans area. Janna Perry-Holloway of the non-profit group CASA of Jefferson, standing for Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children, who help courts make a decision about a child’s temporary or permanent placement, said there are also 5,000 children in Louisiana Foster Care programs. For more information on CASA go online at www.casaforchildren.org. Shown are the Beta Club and officials releasing balloons.

Two Violet men have been booked with burglary and a third with possession of stolen property involving $7,000 worth of shotguns and other hunting items stolen ftom a camp, but now recovered, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

The investigation is continuing and other arrests are possible, the sheriff said.

Hank Doherty, 19, and Lee Gonzales, 22, both of whom listed their address as the 2000 block of Repose Drive, were booked recently with simple burglary of the camp in eastern St. Bernard Parish.

Sheriff’s Dep, Eric Eilers reads a book to 4th-graders in the classroom of teacher Tara Sibal at Joseph Davies Elementary School on Nov. 14.

Students in Snyder’s class hold up thJunior Deputy badges Eilers gave them.

Dep. Eric Eilers reads to students in the classroom of teacher Emilie Snyder.

Dep. Sheriff Eric Eilers read a book to two 4th-grade classes at Joseph Davies Elementary School in Meraux on Friday, Nov. 14, as part of their Literacy Week celebration.

Eilers, who has been with the Sheriff’s Office about 15 years and is assigned to the Community Relations Department, read the book “D.J. and the Jazz Fest’’ about a child attending the New Orleans Jazz Fest with his mother, to 4th- graders in the classrooms of teachers Tara Sibal and Emilie Snyder.

The school, in a week-long program coordinated by Davies official Cindy Meyer, had a theme for each day, including students dressing as their favorite book character on Friday.

Eilers, as well as reading aloud and explaining the book he read, urged students to read on their own and strive to learn something new each day.

A Slidell man and a St. Bernard Parish woman went on a night-long crime spree, stealing a total of 13 vehicle batteries and three truck rims at two homes and a business but were arrested after selling the batteries at a scrap yard, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

The rims that were stolen from a business were recovered in a vehicle when they were stopped.

Anthony Ruppel, 30, of Slidell and Shanda Norton, 24, 2320 Nicosia Drive in the St. Bernard community, were booked recently after being arrested in a vehicle on Paris Road in Chalmette.

They were booked with several counts of simple burglary, theft, possession of stolen things, criminal trespassing and possession of tools for the commission of crimes, the sheriff said. They were also booked with possession of drug paraphernalia, several syringes.

They are both being held in St. Bernard Parish Prison in lieu of bonds set at $30,000 each.

Sheriff’s deputies were alerted the pair had sold possibly stolen goods at a Chalmette scrap yard and were arrested in the 5000 block of Paris Road.

A St. Bernard Parish man was booked with possession of 19.6 grams of methamphetamine after a sheriff’s deputy investigated suspicious activity including the individual being parked in a gasoline station for about a half-hour with his truck engine running and lights out, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

Martin Robin, 34, 1909 Eagle St. in the St. Bernard community, was arrested recently in the vehicle at Paris Road and Judge Perez Drive.

As well as the drugs, Robin was booked with possession of drug paraphernalia after a straw believed to be used for ingesting the drugs was found, the sheriff said.

Robin is being held in St. Bernard Parish Prison in lieu of bond set at $15,000 and he is on a probation hold because he is on probation from a past felony drug conviction.

A deputy was dispatched to the gasoline station at 11:20 p.m. in reference to suspicious activity by Robin, who was the occupant of the vehicle.

An off-white substance was found in the truck and it tested positive for methamphetamine and weighed 19.6 grams. The recovered straw had a white powder residue, the sheriff said.

Two St. Bernard sheriff’s deputies graduated the Peace Officers Standards and Training, or P.O.S.T., academy in St. Charles Parish on Nov. 5. Holding their certificates are, third from left, Melanie Breaux, and next to her, Matthew White. With them from the Sheriff’s Office are, from left, Col. David Mowers, head of the Corrections Division; Maj. David DiMaggio, head of Training; and Chief Deputy Sheriff Richard Baumy.

Two St. Bernard Parish sheriff’s deputies, both working in the Corrections Division, were graduated Wednesday night, Nov. 5, from the Peace Officers Standards and Training, or P.O.S.T., basic police academy at the St. Charles Parish Regional P.O.S.T. Academy.

Graduates from the Sheriff’s Office were Melanie Breaux, who works in the Juvenile Detention Center, and Matthew White, employed in St. Bernard Parish Prison.

The academy includes about 400 hours of training in basic police work including firearms use, criminal investigation, patrol procedures, writing reports, driving training, physical fitness and other areas.

Representing St. Bernard’s Sheriff’s Office at the ceremony included Chief Deputy Richard Baumy, Col. David Mowers, head of the Corrections Division; Maj. David DiMaggio, director of training; and Dep. Eric Eilers.

Part of Louisiana 46 to be closed Tuesday due to motion picture shooting.

On Tuesday Nov. 11, between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., Production J will be filming a motion picture on Highway LA46 between Guillot Drive and Logan Martin Road.

The filming activity will include a staged traffic jam and a simulated vehicular collision and therefore, to ensure the safety of the public and the production crew alike, the highway will be closed to regular traffic during these hours.

Detour routes will be clearly marked in advance, directing traffic along Route 300/Bayou Rd as the alternate route. The closure will begin at Guillot Drive on the western end of Highway 46 and conclude at Logan Martin Road on the eastern side.

On-site law enforcement will be present to ensure public safety and to facilitate traffic control.